Food Shrinkflation

That bag of chips you bought was more air than chips. Those hostess cupcakes? WAY smaller than they were when you were a kid. Even the holes in our BAGELS ARE GETTING BIGGER! What the heck is going on? No you aren’t getting fatter and making everything around you smaller. In fact you may be losing weight thanks to food shrinkflation.

What is food shrinkflation?

Now you may look at this as a negative thing. I mean isn’t it deceptive that the food things we used to buy were bigger than they are now? Isn’t it false advertising to show a donut with a next to non-existant hole in it when in fact what you get is less of a Donut and more of Donecklace? With inflation going up isn’t this just ONE MORE WAY that the big corprate fat cats are taking the screws to the American consumer?

I disagree

I mean think about what you’re saying for a second. You’re mad that you’re getting less ultra-sugary-processed-fat-flakes? You’re peeved that you’re consuming fewer inorganic-microplastic-nuggets? I could see if the packaging was lying to you and saying you were getting a 12 oz can of fizzy-carcenogic-pesticide-sugar-water. But it isn’t. It says 8oz. You’re going to lose weight. You’re going to have to drink more cheap stuff like (shudder) water and eat more filling things like vegetables. You should be happy instead of pissed off.

So what’s the real problem with food shrinkflation?

I know and you know, we all know what the real problem is. No one asked you. Yes, you are paying more for less. Yes, you are inexplicably still hungry after eating things that used to make you feel full. But that’s not the problem. The problem is that things change. You wake up and suddenly your favorite band is classic rock. Your favorite movie is on TCM. The cereal you bought takes up less space in the box than it used to. I get it. I’m 42 and horrified every day when I wake up that the world keeps on spinning without asking my permission first. It gives you a feeling like you’re not in control. Every time you get a little less soap from the bottle, it’s a reminder that someone else is in charge and you are not.

 

 

Oh and the other problem is major corporations have spent decades making sure we’re addicted to their products. So now you have to buy more and more of their food to satiate your hunger while you watch the price go up and up helplessly.

 

 

Anyway here are 14 examples of food shrinkflation

  • Oreos

    I know what you’re thinking, if you get double stuffed you’re going to get double the bang for your buck. WRONG! Double Stuffed? More like Double Dipped

    Oreo shrinkflation
    byu/Blue_Osiris1 inshrinkflation

  • Snickers

    SNICKERS?! You would think a brand whose slogan is “Snickers Satisfies” and who imply that not eating Snickers makes you unable to spell the word “Chiefs” properly would be above this. Great googly moogly has it come to this?

     

    The size of a Snickers bar from 1980s vs one bought now. Shrinkflation!
    byu/jweic inmildlyinfuriating

  • Pringles

    I mean technically Pringles aren’t even potato chips which is deceptive enough, but this is ridiculous. Also if you can’t tell the price is in British Pounds because Shrinkflation isn’t just a US phenomenon.

     

    Pringles with less, now for a higher price!
    byu/BrokenPixleTwitch inshrinkflation

  • Donuts

    You would think the treat most tied to law enforcement would be a little more law-abiding. Alas.

     

    The audacity of these doughnuts
    byu/MyNameJoby inshrinkflation

  • Coffee

    Ok this one is just downright nefarious. Some coffee and breakfast places have been accused of making the bottom of the cup higher so that you get less coffee and don’t even notice. No wonder you’re so cranky Mr. Stanky.

     

    When a large cup is actually a regular because of the bottom
    byu/AmyXSabaku inshrinkflation

  • Ding Dongs, Twinkies really ALL Hostess Snacks

    This isn’t anything recent and can’t be blamed on the current economic falderal. Back in 2012 Hostess went out of business but then was bought out and brought back to life. But to quote Pet Semetary: “Sometimes dead’s betta”

     

     

    View this post on Instagram

     

    A post shared by Hostess Snacks (@hostess_snacks)

  • Bagels

    Pretty much the same trick as donuts. The accusation is they just make the hole a little wider. So guys our Ding Dongs are shrinking and our bagel holes are getting bigger huhuhuhuhuhuhuhuhuhuhuhuhuh. Anyway the fact that I found this out on Tik Tok is reason enough to ban the app.

     

    @spamspamham

    ♬ original sound – daddyjacky

  • Cat Food

    Depending on your financial situation you may have considered eating cat food as a backup plan. Well think again baby! “In 2023, Mars, Incorporated reduced the weight of their Whiskas cat food by 15%, reducing the weight of each pouch from 100 g to 85 g. The price of the packs did not change.” That’s according to The Telegraph

     

     

    View this post on Instagram

     

    A post shared by WHISKAS® UK (@whiskas.uk)

  • He tried to warn us

  • Brownies

    I didn’t even know Domino’s sold brownies and I’m still disappointed. Like, I thought that was just ONE brownie but in fact that’s 1 brownie brick that you divide 6 times amongst you and your very angry family.

     

    These 6 dominos brownies for $6
    byu/vk146 inshrinkflation

  • Paper Towels

    Ok technically this isn’t food obviously. BUT it does mean that you have fewer paper towels to use to wipe up when you do eat food. Which means you will have to eat less food. So it still works.

     

    Much smaller
    byu/DarkHeliopause inshrinkflation

  • Fries at the Airport

    Granted this isn’t the usual size you get from Mcdonalds. However the fact that this would happen anywhere is galling. The fact that they would do this at the Orlando Airport where you are recuperating from a week of getting raked over the coals by a giant rat named Mickey make it so much worse.

     

    “Large” fries at ORD
    byu/septentrio7 inshrinkflation

  • Soda

    Ok this isn’t shrinking so much as somehow making the same product look bigger, charging you more, but giving you the same result. Also what the hell is going on with the prices of Coke lately? It’s as expensive as coke.

     

    I Guess ‘Trickflation’ Is a Thing Now
    byu/oike27 inshrinkflation

  • Toblerone

    Speaking of airports I don’t think I’ve ever seen these for sale outside of an airport. Anyway this is one of the more ingenius versions of shrinkflation. They just increased the separation between the Toblerone teeth things.

     

    This Shrinkflation of Toblerone in the UK, is still mind-boggling…
    byu/y3rnaux inshrinkflation

  • Mozzarella Sticks

    I mean pretty much anything that comes in a bag within a box these days is going to look like this. We might as well just start developing a taste for air.

    Really?
    byu/redleafwater7 inshrinkflation

  • Jonathan Wier

    Jonathan Wier

    Jonathan Wier grew up in St. Louis where he was obsessed with the voices that came out of the radio. He would listen for hours wondering what that person on the other side would say next.

    After failing to find happiness in playing music or manual labor he decided to go to college for radio at WLCA in Godfrey Illinois. He then started working at 97.1 KFTK in St. Louis as a producer and on-air talent.

    From there he has hosted shows in Gainesville Florida (News Talk WSKY 2011-2012), Kansas City (News Talk KMBZ 2012-2019) and now makes his home at Country 102.5 in Boston.

    He lives in Lexington with his wife and two sons. When he’s not at work you can find him watching football, playing music with his kids or trying his best to make his wife not regret marrying a radio guy.

Sign me up for the 105.7 WROR email newsletter!

Make sure you're in the know on the latest music and entertainment news, plus exclusive prizes, trips, and more!

*
*
By clicking "Subscribe" I agree to the website's terms of Service and Privacy Policy. I understand I can unsubscribe at any time.